Early voting has
been “brisk” according to Kathy Kozuszek, Democrat director in the Porter
County Voters Registration office.

During Friday’s
county election board meeting, the board conducted a successful public test
of the election equipment supplied by Elections Systems and Software. A
voting machine from each township was tested to meet statutory requirements.

Outside the
office stood a line of people waiting for their chance to cast their
absentee ballots for early voting. Kozuszek said lines have been constant at
all three early voting locations averaging 300 per day.

The first day of
early voting, Oct. 9, saw a record turnout of 431 voters. Kozuszek said she
expects this year’s numbers to surpass the large turnout during the last
presidential election in 2008 which saw about 17,000 early ballots cast,
12,000 walk-ins and 5,000 by mail.

“We will be at
that or over this year,” Kozuszek told the board.

The results come
as a surprise considering the low-key turnout of about 21 percent for May’s
primary election.

Republican
director in the Voter’s Registration office Sundae Schoon said as of Friday
4,374 ballots had been cast and 500 have been mailed out but not yet
returned.

Due to the
influx of voters, the board agreed to the 3-0 motion they made last month of
holding early voting at the three locations the last two Saturdays before
the election, Oct. 27 and Nov. 3 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Early voting
also takes place Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Voter’s
Registration Office located in Room 105 of the Porter County Administration
Building, 155 Indiana Ave. in Valparaiso. The two satellite locations, the
county’s North Complex in Portage, 3560 Willowcreek Road, and the Chesterton
Town Hall, 790 Broadway, are open from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through
Friday.

The deadline for
early voting is at noon on Monday, Nov. 5. General Election voting will then
start on Tuesday, Nov. 6 from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. at polling places across the
county.

The office also
offers absentee voting by mail. Requests for ballots by mail will be taken
by calling the following phone numbers: (219)465-3398, (219)465-3488,
(219)465-3487.

Kozuszek said
the last day to request an absentee ballot application by mail is Monday,
Oct. 29. She encouraged residents not to wait until the last day to make a
request in order to give the office time to process the applications.

Voting by e-mail
and fax is offered to military personnel and overseas voting only, she said.

or by calling
the Voters Registration office at (219)465-3635 or at (219)465-3638.

Meanwhile, the
election board’s Democratic representative J. J. Stankiewicz said he will
refrain from conducting business until the 2012 General Election vote is
officially certified. He is husband to Nancy Vaidik who is on the county
ballots to retain her office as a state appellate court judge.